Usually in January I slip into a winter coma that is a result of partial depression and partial hibernation. I don’t have anything to actually be depressed over, just the lack of daylight, super cold temps, putting all of my gorgeous Christmas stuff away, and the post-holiday slump. I’m proud to report that I only cried once during the stowing of the decorations.

Now we trudge through the rest of winter hoping for any sign of spring. I have so much to look forward to though, so many trips to take this year, so much love to witness. It will see me through this tough time.

This guy will see me through it too:

OMG right???

OK so for productivity… G and I are painting our basement and making it a really nice livable space. We’ve gone all Property Brothers Lovers on it. We have a gorgeous new couch coming at the end of February – the Dune from Arhaus. I love! The fabric is to die for too, I will snap a picture once we get it in. And we got a fantastic little (huge actually) wine cabinet that is going in the little nook shown below. This is a progress picture on the painting job – we selected Graphite from Restoration Hardware… so us. Greige at its best. G spackles the walls and ceiling first, to fill holes and correct nail pops, then sands everything down so it’s nice a smooth. Then we tape the walls and paint the trim and ceiling first, then after it’s dry tape the trim and paint the walls. I can’t wait for a full before/after for all you HGTV lovers.

We’ve also been experimenting with some paleo baked goods. The holidays (and hibernation in general) has us craving carbs and in order to beat it, we have to (a) give in but also (b) try to find the healthiest version out there to feel satisfied. A good friend of mine gave me Brittany Angell’s cookbook for my birthday and it was great timing! I successfully made the Chocolate cherry scones for a brunch we went to mid-month and they were a hit. So delicious.

Also on the discovery front, I have been using the SleepCycle app on my phone to give me a better idea of my sleeping patterns, and to track to see if I am getting enough sleep and good quality sleep. Disclaimer- this app does not help you sleep. If you sleep bad, it will just tell you that in data form. I love data. And graphs. As you can tell from my last post LOL.

I was so pleased that I scored a 100% (best night of sleep ever in the history of man) that I took a picture of it. Most nights, I range anywhere from 5.5-7.5 hours, and score anywhere from 60-85% in quality. I have found that I feel better at less sleep that is high quality than more sleep that is low quality. It’s all about sleeping through and not being restless which is really hard for me.

And finally, the month of January is always ended on a high note with a celebration for my mother-in-law’s birthday. This year, impossibly, turning 60. She is not my biological mother but I would seriously love to have some of those genes. Doesn’t she look amazing? She swears by Clarins, BTW if you were wondering.

Wishing you a LOVEly February. I will be writing on the topic of love and expressing it frequently this month, so appropriate! XO~ Kayshay